Sonic
Mega Collection is basically the Sonic the Hedgehog Games
from Sega Genesis, all released at once. You like Sonic?
Then stop reading here and go buy this. Don't know if you
do because you have never played Sonic? Well here is the
low-down.
Sonic
the Hedgehog is a blue hedgehog blessed with incredible
speed. The games have a very limited storyline, but if you
really care, there are comic books, TV shows, merchandise,
and soforth to fill you in. The majority of the story comes
straight out of the instruction manual. The evil Dr. Ivo
Robotnik is always pulling some scheme up to take over Mobius
(Sonic's planet) and Sonic does not dig it.The games mainly
consists of Sonic fighting his way through badniks and terrain
to get to the end of a zone, and eventually fight Dr. Robotnik
after each one in a different contraption. Each one has
it's own differences however. Here's a brief description:
Sonic
the Hedgehog is Sonic running through a platform world,
trying to stop the evil Robotnik Robotnik is attempting
to turn the good animals of Mobius to robots to work for
his cause, and Sonic won't have it. Sonic blasts through
7 zones, each with 3 stages, to fight robotnik in a different
machine everytime. There are special stages you can go through
to collect Chaos Emeralds in a spinning colorful area also
by amassing 50 rings by the end of a stage and jumping through
a large gold ring.
Sonic
the Hedgehog 2 is the followup to Sonic 1. This game features
Robotnik back to his plans again, but with a goal in mind
now... to build a giagantic doomsday weapon, the Death Egg.
This time Sonic has help, a friend of his named Miles "Tails"
Prower. Sonic and Tails now race against time through 11
beautifully made levels to stop the doctor's evil plot.
Once again, the Chaos Emeralds, a great source of power,
are outside Robotnik's grasp. By grabbing 50 rings and jumping
through the star portal that appears above a Star Post when
you hit it, you will be warped to a 3d halfpipe-type special
stage to compete for an emerald. This time, gaining all
7 will render you into Super Sonic, and invincible, superfast
golden hedgehog!
Sonic
the Hegehog 3 and Sonic the Hedgehog and Knuckles are quite
closely related. They were released within the same year
(1994) and have very similar story lines. Both games feature
2 act zones, but a lot longer than the Sonic 2 zones. Sonic
3 features 6 zones, and Sonic and Knuckles features 8 zones.
The way to get to the special stages to recieve Chaos Emeralds
in this game is by jumping through huge rings, like the
ones in Sonic 1, strategically placed within the levels.
The stages consist of spheres, red blue, and yellow. The
way to get an emerald is to touch all blues, but no reds,
and you can bounce on yellows. Getting all rings in stages
gives you a continue also. There are also mini stages to
gain rings and extra lives throughout the game, which you
access by touching a Star Post with a certain number of
rings. When played in conjunction, "Sonic 3 and Knuckles",
you can gather the seven Chaos Emeralds, then 7 Super Emeralds
to become Hyper Sonic, Hyper Knuckles, or Super Tails!
Sonic
3 starts right after Sonic and Tails have taken out the
Death Egg. It falls downward until it crashes down on the
Floating Island. Here resides Knuckles the Echinda, the
last surviving creature of an ancient group assigned to
protect the Master Emerald, a gargantuan emarald that powers
the island to float. Robotnik realizes that the Chaos Emeralds
will be obsolete if the Master Emerald were possessed. So,
as Sonic and Tails race toward the island in possession
of all of the Chaos Emeralds, Robotnik convince's Knuckles
that they are after his Master Emerald. So while Knuckles
is after Sonic and Tails, Robotnik is plotting to steal
the Master Emerald...
In
Sonic and Knuckles, you can play as Sonic or Knuckles, there
are sort of two story lines. Knuckles sees this mysterious
egg-bot blowing stuff up on his island, and he gets PO'ed.
He takes off after it, and races through the island after
this bot, fighting a masked figure (Robotnik) along the
way. Sonic and Tails are still putting along after the Master
Emerald, and, as always, trying to beat the living crap
outta Robotnik. It is a three sided race with confused alliances
for the Master Emerald......
Sonic
Spinball has a very tiny plot, but an amazingly challenging
layout for a pinball game. The game starts as Sonic and
Tails fly over a huge strech of water toward Robotnik's
new underground lair built into an active volcano (Yeah
baby! Hee hee...) when the plane takes a hit from a base-defense
cannon. Sonic gets thrown out, and spins down through the
water... He finds himself in these Toxic Caverns, and realizes
that the whole bases defense system is based around a pinball-like
array. So, seeing as to how Sonic always was good at curling
up and spining off, he goes to face the evil doctor himself.......
Sonic Spinball has 4 levels, but don't be fooled into a
false sense of simplicity, they aren't easy. The point is
to bounce around, and collect Chaos Emeralds to eventually
open boss rooms, and fight bosses. There are also cool pinball
machine stages which are accessed when you beat a level
or collect all rings in a level. This game may be challenging,
but it is worth it.
Doctor
Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine is one of my all time favorite
games. Do you like Tetris? Well, this is tetris plus so
much more. Doctor Robotnik and his henchmen Scratch and
Grounder (who you may know if you ever saw the Adventures
of Sonic the Hedgehog TV show) are rounding up all of the
bean-folk on Mobius and roboticizing them to help with his
evil empire. He has a bunch more shady robots working for
him, and if you want to stop him, you are going to have
to beat all twelve of them, and then the doctor himself.
The game consists of colored beans, sort of like Tetris
blocks, and you have to align 4 of the same color to set
them free. This also causes for you to drop rock beans on
the opponent, sometimes messing up their whole plan. You
can of course do combination moves, and if you are good
enough, easily K.O. any opponent. This is a great single
or multiplayer game, and IT IS ADDICTING.
The
last primary game on here is Sonic 3D Blast. This game has
7 large levels, and a whole noe look to Sonic. Everything
is in a sort-of 3D-ish birdseye view, and you run through
stages with depth, height, and length. You can get Chaos
Emeralds by talking to Tails or Knuckles (just standin'
around), and having 50 rings. This game consists of Sonic
running around these 3 dimensional levels resquing th oppressed
Flickies (birdy type things). Robotnik has roboticized them
into his robots, and you have to free them and help them
back to their transdimensional warp-ring. The games has
good color, good sound, and good gameplay. This is about
all I can tell you wtihout you having played it.
Now,
Mega Collection does, as all good games should, have some
secrets. You can earn secret games, blasts from the past,
by beating or playing certain games a specific number of
times. What games you ask? Well, you'll have to find out
yourselves! Also, there is a cool Sonic movie gallery, Sonic
comic section, and Sonic history section. This game is a
Sonic lover's dream, especially if you don't own these gems
on the Genesis. Interested? Well, indulge and enjoy in this
package of blue hedgehog goodness! ~Storm
